Taylor Swift Fans Are Now Spamming Kim Kardashian's Instagram With the Rat Emoji

1 year ago

Ahh, the snake emoji: It’s become a piece of iconography and digital warfare for both Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian’s seismic fan bases. Swift’s critics were the first people to use it, of course. They dubbed her a “snake” in summer 2016 after Kardashian leaked a video of Kanye West and Swift discussing his song “Famous.” To recap, West included some pointed lyrics about Swift in the song, of which she said she didn’t give her OK. But then Kardashian leaked audio that showed Swift seemingly approving the line where West says they had sex; Swift, however, says it was the “that bitch” line she didn’t greenlight and had issues with. Who was right or wrong in this scenario is irrelevant. Swift’s reputation took a hit as a result—hence her new album—and the general public branded her a liar.

After the incident Swift’s social media feeds were quickly spammed with the snake emoji. But the singer reclaimed the image in 2017 when she released her song “Look What You Made Me Do.” It then became a source of power for Swift’s fans—and something they used against Kardashian. That’s presumably why the reality star blocked the use of the emoji on her Instagram: The Swifties kept bombarding her with it.

And now the drama’s continuing (groan) with a brand new emoji: the rat. Here’s what’s going on. I’m sure you all remember that West’s “Famous” video included a naked wax figure of Swift. Well, Kardashian posted a throwback photo featuring the “Famous” image that included the Swift figure in it, and the pop star’s fans were not pleased. They quickly started spamming Kardashian’s Instagram with rat emojis because “snakes eat rats.”

Check out the photo in question, below:

And here are some of the responses.

Swift’s fans are also referencing the Reputation lyrics that are believed to be about Kimye, like “All the drama queens taking swings. All the jokers dressing up as kings.”

Oof. Just when you thought all this drama was over. Is that a #KimIsOverParty hashtag I see?

Swift and Kardashian haven’t commented on this fan war yet, but based on what happened last year, it’s only a matter of time before they do.